VC Consolidation Continues, Exits Fall

When we last checked in on the performance of the venture capital industry, the dollars raised in 2012 continued to rise for a second-straight year even though the number of funds dropped. According to the latest numbers from Thomson Reuters and the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA), that trend continued in the first quarter of 2013.

In the report released last week, U.S. VC firms raised $4.1 billion from 35 funds in Q1 2013. On the positive side, the dollar commitments were an increase of 22 percent from Q4 2012. But the number of funds raised remains a cause for concern—it was a 14 percent drop from Q4 2012, a 34 percent drop from Q1 2012 and the slowest quarter on record since 2003.

The top five funds—including three from Massachusetts—accounted for more than half of the total raised.

That news followed a release from the previous week that venture-backed IPO exits in Q1 2013 dropped 52 percent from the previous quarter. It was also the slowest quarter since Q1 1995.